Dance of the Waves
by Mikashimotaku
Summary: It was just another ordinary day when he saw the transfer student Ashimei Maiha for the first time; little did he know their fated meeting would lead his life to anything but ordinary. Possibly OOC. -HarukaxOC-
1. Prologue - Haruka

**Dance of the Waves**

**Prologue**

The wind blew softly, as he headed out. Brushing the bangs from his eyes, Nanase Haruka, or 'Haru' as he liked to be called, looked up to the blue sky that greeted him. It was an ordinary day. The sun shone down warmly, giving everything a golden, butter like feeling.

As he descended down the steps toward school, Haru only had one thought in his mind: _It's warm enough to swim._

The thought itself made him walk a little faster, trying to reach his destination quicker. Iwatobi High School; where his beloved swimming pool was. The thought that he had class first was pushed far back in his mind.

As was every other day, the boy's thoughts were clouded with thoughts of swimming, water, among the like. The only difference today was Makoto wasn't beside him talking about nonsensical things he was unlikely to remember. The taller boy was running late today, one of the twins had caught a cold, and he was caring for them first. It had been a long time since Haru had walked to school alone.

His path to school was a simple one, a quick walk down the steps, turn right at the second turn, and cross the bridge over the river. At the time of year, the trees overlooking the bridge were in full bloom. Plush green leaves filtered in the early morning sunshine, turning the area into an almost magical tunnel. He had just set foot on the overpass when he noticed someone standing near to the middle. Her hands rest gently on the side railing, peering up at the sun smothered foliage.

She had chocolate brown hair, flowing like little streams down her neck, and spilling over her shoulder blades. It framed her pale face, showcasing her rosy pink cheeks. She looked in his direction, and their eyes made contact. Gorgeous eyes the colour of mahogany, searching deeply within his own ocean blue eyes. He walked closer, giving her another look. She was wearing the Iwatobi High School uniform, and the bow around her neck a bright red. She was a first year, the same age as Nagisa and Rei.

He looked away, continuing to walk down the bridge, slowly approaching her. He had barely brushed by her, when she finally spoke up, "Um... Hello!" She called out, and he turned back to look at her. She had rather shy posture, "M-my name is Ashimei Maiha." Her rosy pink cheeks were getting brighter by the second, "T-this is my first day of school here, n-nice to meet you!" She bowed quickly and politely.

The raven head was surprised, and as he stood there in front of a girl he had never met before, who had introduced herself so suddenly, he could feel his face growing hot. It must have been the sun. "Shouldn't you be telling that to your class?" He asked, looking away, his gaze fluttering away to anywhere but the girl named Ashimei Maiha.

"Ah! Sorry," She replied sheepishly, "I just... I promised myself the first person I saw I would say hello to, was that weird?"

His response took a second, "... No."

She smiled at that, "It's nice to meet you," she said again, "What's your name?"

"... Nanase Haruka."

"Well, I'll see you around Nanase-san!" She greeted kindly. And just as quickly as she had waltzed in with her strange introduction, she was gone; walking down the overpass, the sun filtering through that chocolate coloured hair of hers.

Haru stood there dumbfounded. His previous thoughts of water, and swimming, momentarily forgotten. _Ashimei Maiha... What a strange girl._

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><p><strong>Hello everyone! This is my second fanfiction for Free! and my first multichapter contribution to the fandom. I'd really appreciate feedback! So if you could pretty please leave a review and tell me how it is, I'd be really happy! Thank you! :)<strong>

**As well, this is just a prologue, but I'm hoping that the chapters themselves will be longer. Thank you for reading!~**

**~Mikashi-chan :)**


	2. Chapter 1 - Maiha

**Hello everyone! After about 5 or so months, I present to you the first chapter of Dance of the Waves! I'm sorry it took so long... I'll try to write faster next time. I was very busy and kind of lost interest. But with the second season starting up now, my creative juices from free! is flowing again! I'd just like you guys to know, this story will somewhat follow the first season. Very vaguely. Probably. Anyway, enjoy! :)**

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><p><strong>Dance of the Waves<strong>

**Chapter 1 - Maiha**

Her bedroom was already cluttered, despite the fact that she had only been living there for a week. Clothes were littered across the floor, stray socks speckles the floor, crumpled t-shirts piled up at the foot of her bed. Her closet was basically empty, if that helped the matter. A majority of her clothes were still packed inside boxes, stacked by the foot by foot windows that overlooked the ocean. The only organize part of her room was the Iwatobi High School uniform hanging on the back of the door.

"Maiha!" Her mother called from up the stairs, "_Maiha!_"

From her bed, the brunette girl sat up, eyes droopy with sleep. She yawned, stretching and turning to look at the clock.

7:00.

Maiha got up, shivering at the coolness of the early spring air. Her window was cracked open, a gentle ocean breeze drifting into the stagnant room. Draping a blanket around her shoulders, Maiha trudged down the stairs where her mother was calling her name.

"Morning," She mumbled, passing her mother and sitting at the kitchen table beside her younger brother. The boy was spreading a heaping amount of butter on his toast.

"Maiha, you don't want to be late for your first day of school," Her mother fretted, laying down a plate of eggs on the table.

"I won't be, I promise," Maiha replied, eating slowly. "The school is only 10 minutes away."

Breakfast went by without much fuss. Maiha spent the majority of her time getting ready for school. The bathroom of their new house was quite cramped, and she found herself bumping into corners and stubbing her toes. That didn't surprise her though. She was a clumsy person and she knew it.

Squirming into her high school uniform for the first time, she critiqued herself in the mirror. The uniform was a tad bit too big for her, because he dad had ordered it and misjudged her size. The black blazer sleeves were too long, ending close to the tips of her fingers. The skirt went to about her mid-thigh, and her knee high socks nearly met her skirt. She wondered if it looked tacky. Maiha tied the red first year ribbon around her neck and gave herself a smile in the mirror.

This was her chance to be a new person. Because of her dad's job, they had moved all the way from Tokyo to Iwatobi. It just so happened to be at the time when she would start her first year of high school.

Maiha wasn't unpopular in the slightest. She had friends she loved very much. But they all thought of her as the quiet 'bookworm'. It wasn't a mislabel either. She was shy and soft-spoken with people she didn't know. She preferred books over parties, and staying home over going out. But she didn't want to be the boring one who never got invited anywhere anymore. She was going to make friends and be as pleasant and social as she wanted. At least, that was her goal.

Walking down the sidewalk, she started seeing other students wearing the same uniform as her. The thought itself made her nervous. She never liked being in crowded places where there was a lot of people. She hadn't noticed, but she was holding onto her bag so tightly, her knuckles were turning white. Her heart beat loudly and she could feel her face flushing.

_Please not here. _Maiha thought to herself. _Keep calm. Stay calm. Think about happy things. It's okay._

Despite her efforts, she could feel her muscles quivering anxiously as she crossed the bridge over the river. She felt a little bit dizzy, quite frankly.

_It's okay. _Maiha repeated to herself. _You know what you're going to do? You're going to relax and introduce yourself to the first person you encounter. You're going to be nice and polite and social. _She looked up at the smoldering green leaves. Resting her free hand on the railing, she focused in on how cold the metal felt. _Calm. Calm. Calm. Calm._

And then she heard footsteps on the other side of the bridge. Her natural instinct was to look.

A boy with clear blue eyes. He was tall and looked well exercised. On his face was a bored and yet somewhat intrigued expression, his eyes curious and searching her own. His eyes were an ocean, and she felt like she could get lost in their coolness and the hidden warmth beneath them.

He wore the Iwatobi uniform, a green tie around his neck. _A second year? _She wondered.

This was her first encounter. She promised herself she would introduce herself. Her heart fluttered, trying to summon up the courage. She drew in a shaky breath, her gaze still locked with the second year. He had already stopped looking at her, walking on and just about passing her. "Um... Hello!" Maiha stammered. It felt like her throat was jammed with cotton.

The boy with the blue eyes turned back, a stunned expression on his face. Was he surprised that she had said something? Maiha didn't have the chance to think about it. "M-my name is Ashimei Maiha," the words tumbled out, choppy and quivering, "T-this is my first day of school here, n-nice to meet you!" She bowed, before staring at him, fear swimming in her eyes.

He said nothing at first, refusing to meet her eyes.

_Oh no. I've gone and made a fool out of myself and a second year. What do I do? What do I do?_

She didn't know if it was her imagination, but was his face just as red as hers?

"Shouldn't you be telling that to your class?" He asked finally. His gaze shifted from tree to tree.

"Ah! Sorry..." She murmured quietly. She could feel her closing in on herself. It was her body's natural protection method, "I just... I promised myself the first person I saw I would say hello to, was that weird?"

He opened his mouth, hesitating a moment before replying. "...No."

Maiha breathed a sigh of relief. So he didn't think she was an absolute nutcase. Her muscles relaxed. She hadn't even realized they had tensed up so much. "It's nice to meet you," she said, her voice coming out steadier this time, "what's your name?"

His gaze met hers once more. "Nanase Haruka."

"Well, I'll see you soon Nanase-san," Maiha replied warmly. Her cheeks felt hot and that dizzy feeling was still there, but for the first time in a long time, she had been able to hold a conversation with a total stranger. But maybe Nanase wasn't that much of a stranger anymore.

He didn't say anything more as she hurried away, too embarrassed to stay.

_Nanase Haruka-san... I wonder if he would ever consider being friends. _Maiha laughed, catching her thoughts. _Oh of course not. He's a second year, I'm just another weird first year. That was probably the only time I'll ever talk to him._

XxXxX

Luckily for Maiha, Iwatobi High School was easy enough for her to figure out. She found her classroom just before the bell rang and greeted the teacher. He told her to introduce herself in front of the class.

_It's alright. _She promised herself, _it's exactly the same as introducing yourself to Nanase-san. Take it easy._

She had at least twenty students staring at her while the teacher wrote her name on the blackboard. She took a deep breath, trying to stop the anxious quivering of her body. Without noticing, she pictured Haruka's blue eyes and slight smile. The thought calmed her down. "My name is Ashimei Maiha," She said. Her voice was still soft, but at least she wasn't stammering. "I just transferred here from Tokyo. It's nice to meet you." She bowed politely.

Maiha was sure that her face and ears were bright red. But at least it wasn't as bad as she had thought. Her practice on Haruka had really helped it seemed. "Okay Ashimei-san, you can sit in the empty seat beside Matsuoka-san."

A girl with fiery red hair pulled back into a ponytail raised her hand, waving Maiha over. Placing down her bag and sitting down, the red head leaned over, "Hi there Ashimei-san, I'm Matsuoka Kou. It's nice to meet you!"

"You too Matsuoka-san," Maiha said quietly.

"No need to be shy, and please call me Kou!"

"Ah... Okay, Kou-san?"

The spirited girl smiled, "Let's be friends, okay?"

The morning went by like a flurry for Maiha. She was never one for change, and it took a toll on her quite easily. Meeting new teachers, having different classes, being in a new school with new people, it was all overwhelming. She breathed a sigh of relief when lunch finally pulled around. She was thinking about eating her lunch in the classroom and maybe reading for the rest of the period.

"Hey Maiha-chan," Kou said, leaning over the girl's desk, "Do you wanna eat lunch with me and my friends?"

Kou smiled happily at her, waiting for an answer. Maiha had the initial reaction to say no. "Ah, it's okay..." She murmured quietly. But would this really get her anywhere? Wasn't she trying to be more social and open herself up to new people? She was just reverting back to her old self. "I mean, sure."

Kou perked up, "Yay! Do you have a lunch? Or are you going to buy something first?"

"My mom made me something," Maiha replied, getting her lunch out of her bag. "Where do you eat lunch Kou-san?"

"Up on the rooftop, come I'll show you!"

Kou took Maiha's hand and proceeded in dragging the shy girl down the hallway. People were staring and maybe that would have bothered Maiha before. But Kou was laughing and it felt nice to have a friend, so maybe it wasn't as bad as she would've thought it would be.

XxXxX

Maiha was surprised that the roof was left unlocked in the first place. Back in Tokyo, students weren't even allowed near it. Maiha had to admit, she loved it in Iwatobi. The air felt fresher, the sun seemed to shine brighter, and she could hear the ocean wherever she went. "Here we are," Kou said, flinging the roof door open.

"Ah! Gou-chan is here!"

"It's _Kou_!" She replied quickly, an aggravated tone slipping into her voice.

Maiha saw a short blond boy with magenta coloured eyes smiling at Kou, who looked down at him with frustration. "Why would I call you by that when it's not your real name?" He asked curiously.

"Just... Forget it," Kou sighed. "Nagisa-kun, this is my friend Ashimei Maiha. She just transferred today, please don't terrorize her."

Maiha was startled when the boy leapt up and grabbed both her hands, "Ah! It's nice to meet you Mai-chan! I'm Hazuki Nagisa, a first year in class B. It's nice to meet you."

Maiha was so surprised, the words caught in her mouth. _H-he's so close! And a stranger... And... And..._

"Nagisa-kun, I'm pretty sure you're scaring her," Someone else said. It was another boy, with dark blue hair and red-rimmed glasses. He was a lot taller than Nagisa and definitely a lot less hyperactive.

"Mou, Rei-chan you're no fun!" Nagisa exclaimed, releasing Maiha's hands and sitting back down beside the boy with the glasses.

"I'm Ryugazaki Rei, class B." He said, giving Maiha a nod. "I'm sorry for his inability to introduce himself normally."

"Aw, Rei-chan that's going too far!" The blond pouted, beginning to nibble on his bread with strawberry spread.

"No need to be shy Maiha-chan," Kou said, sitting down in front of Nagisa and Rei. "Come sit!" She patted the spot next to her. Hesitantly, Maiha took a seat. She was beginning to question her decision to come eat lunch here.

Kou however was already relaxed, opening her lunch box and eating. "Where are Haruka-senpai and Makoto-senpai?"

"Who knows?" Nagisa shrugged, chomping down on his bread and getting crumbs on his shirt, "probably just running late as usual. Maybe Haru-chan is spending lunch swimming again."

"He spends so much time in the pool, it's no wonder why he's so good at swimming." She pointed her chopsticks at Rei, "Maybe you should learn a thing or two from him Rei-kun."

"I find that highly offensive," Rei scoffed, "I have told you before, I already memorized the theory behind swimming, it's just a matter of-"

"Yes, yes. I _know_ we've heard it all before," Kou interrupted. She looked at Maiha, "How about you Maiha-chan? Do you swim?"

Maiha was about to answer, when the roof door burst open. "Sorry we're late, Haru and I get held up by a teacher! I told Haru he couldn't swim in the-"

A tall, broad shouldered boy with dusty brown hair and green eyes rushed in. He had a sweet, doe like expression on his face, and a very kind demeanor. "Ah!" He spotted Maiha and stopped in his tracks, "Are you a friend of Kou-chan's?"

"A-Ashimei," Maiha stammered. Just how many people were going to show up here? The thought made her uncomfortable. "Ashimei Maiha."

"It's nice to meet you Ashimei-chan," The new arrival said charmingly, "My name is Tachibana Makoto." He sat down on Maiha's other side.

"What did Haruka-senpai do this time?" Kou sighed, "honestly what are we going to do with him?"

The gears in Maiha's head started turning. Haruka... Senpai? She stared at the boy named Makoto. He sported a green tie. He was a second year. Certainly this 'Haruka-senpai' everyone talked about couldn't possibly be...?

The door closed shut and everyone turned to look. Maiha took a deep intake of air. Sapphire eyes that shone, hair as black as midnight, there was no mistaking it.

His lazy gaze drifted until it landed right on Maiha's. Their eyes locked. Maiha could feel her face turning red. All the embarrassing things she had done that morning flashing before she could stop herself.

Everyone looked at her questioningly before looking back at Haruka. "Haru?" Makoto asked.

Haruka tore his gaze from Maiha and cleared his throat. Without a word, he sat between her and Makoto. It was awkwardly silent for a moment.

Haruka opened his lunch and took one bite. Maiha wondered if he was conscious about everyone staring at him. She definitely would be. Swallowing, he put down his chopsticks and looked at Maiha again. It looked like he was uncomfortably warm.

"You're the girl from this morning," He said finally. "Ashimei... Maiha?"

Maiha nodded, feeling the blood rush to her head. She didn't know why, but hearing Haruka say her name for the first time made her heart feel just a little bit funny.

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><p><strong>And that's it! Please leave me a review and tell me what you think! Until next time~<strong>

**Special Thanks To:**

**1) MintyAngel**

**2) cakeluver2**

**3) Mizushimamiharu**

**4) AnimexLuver4Ever**

**5) keulloi**

**6) Guest**

**Thank you for reviewing! Your lovely words really make me smile!**

**~Mikashi-chan :)**


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